Product News and Recalls

Departing Johnson & Johnson CEO Weldon getting $143.5 million

Departing Johnson & Johnson Chief Executive Officer William C. Weldon, who is leaving after a spate of disastrous recalls, will get $143.5 million in retirement pay, according to Bloomberg.

Bloomberg reports that Weldon, 63, will remain chairman. He amassed $95.1 million in deferred and long-term compensation during his 40 years with the company, and his pension has a present value of $48.4 million.

The report mentions that the company struggled with recalls of artificial hip implants and over-the-counter drugs, and safety concerns involving transvaginal mesh implants.

According to a recent Associated Press report, there were more than two dozen recalls of nonprescription drugs and at least two for prescription drugs since 2009.

There were also recalls of about 25 medical devices and consumer products. Federal regulators have had three of the company’s factories under scrutiny, and shut down one of them.

DePuy, a subsidiary of Johnson & Johnson, issued a recall of their ASR hip implants in 2010. A typical implant is supposed to last for 15 years or longer, but an estimated one out of every eight patients who received one of those hip implants needed corrective surgery within five years.

Several major medical professional organizations and peer-reviewed medical journals in the U.K. have recently called for banning metal-on-metal implants.

DePuy continued to market the devices despite hundreds of complaints of early failure.
Physicians are now being directed to refer their patients to DePuy’s claims settlement company, Broadspire, but these “settlements” do not cover all potential damages or future injuries.

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